Sheet responsive control device



May 31, 1966 c. ALTMANN SHEET RESPONSIVE CONTROL DEVICE Filed April 6,1964 CON/PAD ALTMA/VN INVENTOR. BY %MM wm&ldam,

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,254,167 SHEET RESPONSIVE CONTROL DEVICEConrad Altmann, Rochester, N.Y., assignor to Eastman Kodak Company,Rochester, N.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Apr. 6, 1964, Ser.No. 357,662 6 Claims. (Cl. 200-6113) The present invention relates to acontrol device. More particularly, the invention relates to a sheetresponsive device for controlling a microswitch or the like, which isactuated by engagement with a moving sheet and which thereafter isdisengaged from the sheet so as not to impede the movement of the sheet.

As will become apparent from the following description, the presentinvention has many useful adaptations and be used in numerous types ofapparatus. However, for purposes of illustration, the invention isdescribed herein as it might be incorporated in a document photographingapparatus, such as, for example, a continuous microfilmer. Quite oftenin this type of apparatus, the movement of each document through theapparatus is utilized to initiate and terminate the sequence of theseveral operations within the apparatus. For example, by actuatingmicroswitches located in the various electrical circuits of theapparatus, the document controls the timed movement of the recordingfilm strip, the energizing of exposure lamps,

the opening and closing of a shutter, and the counting of exposures.

Known sheet responsive devices occasionally damage the leading edge of adocument, and particularly a thin document, moving through a microfilmeras a result of the initial impact with the device, and/ or as a resultof the force that must be exerted by the document against the device tomove it out of the document path so that the document can continue itsmovement. The present invention comprises an improved sheet responsivedevice which minimizes the possibility of sheet damage by provinding anarm which is engaged and moved by the sheet, and which, when the arm hasbeen moved a sufficient distance to actuate a controlled operation, iscammed out of engagement with the sheet by a camming knee on the armmoving against a face of the sheet.

One object of the present invention is to provide a sheet responsivecontrol device which minimizes the possibility of damage occurring tosheets which actuate the device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device which iseasily disengaged from a moving sheet of material after it has beenengaged and displaced through a predetermined distance by the sheet.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a sheetresponsive device having a movable document engaging arm which insurespositive document engagement, but which, when the arm has been moved agiven distance by the document, cams itself out of engagement therewith.

Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomereadily apparent to those skilled in the art from the followingdescription, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which likecharacters denote like parts, and in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevation view illustrating one embodiment of the inventionand showing the position of a sheet responsive arm prior to engagementby a moving document;

FIG. 2' is an elevation view showing the position of the arm just beforedisengagement from the document;

FIG. 3 is an elevation View showing the arm and document positionsfollowing disengagement but before the document has cleared the arm; and

FIG. 4 is a section view taken along line 4--4 of FIG. 1.

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As shown in FIG. 1, a document D is transported in the directionindicated by the arrow along a path which is defined by conveyor belt12, which moves around idler roller 14, and a sandwiching conveyor belt15. Although the sandwiching belt 15 is not needed to hold a document onbelt 12 where the document is being transported in a horizontal plane,the presence of belt 15 hasan advantage of giving the documentadditional rigidity for engaging and moving document responsive arm 16.In addition, belt 15 cooperates with the camming means presentlydescribed in guiding and pulling the document out of engagement with thearm as the document moves around roller 14. Arm 16 has a curved endportion 18 and a camming knee 20 adjacent to this curved portion, and isresiliently mounted in an apparatus such that curved portion 18intercepts and is movable along the document path by a moving document.The curved end portion 18, in addition to providing a cushioning effecttothe initial contact between the document and arm, provides a positiveengaging action which facilitates movement ofthe arm along the documentpath but which does not impede disengagement of the document. In theembodiment shown, arm 16 is resiliently held in this interceptingposition by a spring 22, and two fixed stop members 24 and 25 towardwhich the arm is pulled by the bias of the spring. Spring 22, inaddition to pulling arm 16 in a direction substantially parallel to itslength and against these stop members, also tends to rotate the curvedportion 18 of the arm counterclockwise around stop 24 and into thedocument path. A microswitch arm 26 which controls a given operation ofthe apparatus, for example film movement during photographing, by theopening or closing of an electrical contact in the microswitch 28, isinserted through an aperture 30 in the document responsive arm 16.

As a document D is carried by belt 12 into engagement with the curvedportion 18 of arm 16, the arm 16 is forced by the leading edge of thedocument to move against the bias of spring 22 and along the documentpath as shown in FIG. 2. Movement of arm 16 against the shoulder ofmicroswitch arm 26 forces the arm 26 to pivot around its fixed end 32 toan actuating position at which the microswitch arm 26 closes theelectrical circuit controlled by the microswitch. The path of arm 16, inaddition to moving substantially along the document path, rotatesslightly such that the path of knee 20' intersects the path of thedocument. Continued 'movernent by the document along the path, after theknee 20 moves into contact with the surface of the document, cams thecurved portion 18 out of the document path and out of engagementwith'the document. Following disengagement, the bias of spring 22 pullsthe arm against stop 25 as shown in FIG. 3. The end 19 of the curvedportion bears -agains the surface of the document, and resets inengagement position as soon as the trailing edge of the document clearsthe end 19 of the arm. This provides for rapid resetting of the arm forclosely spaced documents. It should be noted that extremely slight forcebetween the leading edge of a document and the contacting arm issufficient to force knee 20 to cam the curved portion 18 of arm 16 outof engagement with the document and out of the document path, and thatthe relative movement of arm 16, as illustrated by the drawings, hasbeen exaggerated to better show the operation of a preferred embodimentof the invention. Accordingly, in a device embodying the novel conceptof the present invention, the slight force present results in little orno wear and damage to the documents which come in contact with thedocument responsive arm.

It will now be appreciated that the described sheet responsive devicerepresents an improvement in the art by providing a device whichminimizes damage to the leading edge of a sheet coming in contacttherewith. Although the invention has been described with reference to apreferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that variations andmodifications can be effected Within the spirit and scope of theinvention as described hereinabove, and as defined in the appendedclaims.

Having now particularly described my invention, what I desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States and what I claim is:

1. A device for engaging and disengaging one edge of a sheet as thesheet moves along a given path, comprising:

(a) an arm member having means for engaging said one edge of the sheet;

(b) means for resiliently mounting said arm member for movement of saidengaging means in and along said path from a first position to a secondposition in response to the movement along the path of the sheet thusengaged thereby;

(c) said arm member further including camming means for disengaging saidengaging means from said one edge of said sheet;

(d) said camming means being spaced from said engaging means andpositioned to move into camming contact with the face of said engagedsheet as said engaging means is moved by the edge of said sheet to saidsecond position.

2. A device in accordance with claim 1 wherein said engaging meanscomprises a curvilinear end portion of said arm for intercepting andengaging said one edge of said sheet.

3. A device for engaging and disengaging one edge of a sheet as thesheet moves along a given path, comprising:

(a) an arm having a curvilinear end portion for intercepting andengaging said one edge of said sheet;

(b) means for resiliently mounting said arm for movement in and alongsaid path from a first position to a second position in response to themovement of said sheet in the path;

(c) camming means on said arm for disengaging said end portion from saidone edge of said sheet comprising a knee formed on said arm which ismoved toward said path and against a face of said sheet in response tomovement of the arm to said second position by an engaged sheet, wherebysaid end portion is disengaged from the sheet.

4. A device in accordance with claim 3 and further comprising means forpivotally mounting said arm for movement substantially along the path.

5. A device for controlling the opening and closing of a microswitch inresponse to a sheet passing along a given path, comprising:

(a) an arm having a curved end portion mounted for engagement with, andmovement along said path by, said sheet;

(b) a camming knee on the arm for contacting one face of the sheet afterengagement by said arm with said sheet, to cam said curved portion outof engagement with the sheet after a predetermined movement of said armalong said path;

(c) means for resiliently supporting said arm for move References Citedby the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 5/1953 Gaite a ZOO-46 8/1953 EganZOO-61.13

BERNARD A. GILHEANY, Primary Examiner. R. N. ENVALL, JR., AssistantExalni'ner.

1. A DEVICE FOR ENGAGING SAID DISENGAGING ONE EDGE OF A SHEET AS THESHEET ALONG A GIVEN PATH, COMPRISING: (A) AN ARM MEMBER HAVING MEANS FORENGAGING SAID ONE EDGE OF THE SHEET; (B) MEANS FOR RESILIENTLY MOUNTINGSAID ARM MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID ENGAGING MEANS IN AND ALONG SAIDPATH FROM A FIRST POSITION TO A SECOND POSITION IN RESPONSE TO THEMOVEMENT ALONG THE PATH OF THE SHEET THUS ENGAGED THEREBY; (C) SAID ARMMEMBER FURTHER INCLUDING CAMMING MEANS FOR DISENGAGING SAID ENGAGINGMEANS FROM SAID ONE EDGE OF SAID SHEET; (D) SAID CAMMING MEANS BEINGSPACED FROM SAID ENGAGING MEANS AND POSITIONED TO MOVE INTO CAMMINGCONTACT WITH THE FACE OF SAID ENGAGED SHEET AS SAID ENGAGING MEANS ISMOVED BY THE EDGE OF SAID SHEET TO SAID SECOND POSITION